Student earns big money with Second Life
By Stephen Sossamon,
Staff Writer
and Amanda McCutchen,
News Writing Student
Music has given Kerry Lowery the opportunity to travel all over the nation, and the Internet has given him the opportunity to perform for people all over the world.
Lowery currently is playing eight to 10 shows a week on Second Life, an online video game where real people get together to live out virtual lives.
“It’s just another chat world,” Lowery said.
In Second Life, residents have the opportunity to establish businesses and homes.
There, they can buy, trade and sell with one another. And they do it all with Linden Dollars — the virtual world’s currency.
Lowery does make money from playing his shows, which leads to a steady monthly paycheck of around $1,000, if not more than.
The exchange rate is 280 Linden Dollars for every U.S. dollar. Making money online has enabled Lowery to quit his job in real life, he said.
“It doesn’t sound like a lot of money, but it adds up,” he said.
The money he earns on Second Life is converted and deposited into his PayPal account. From there, it’s Lowery’s to spend in the real world, on real things.
Lowery, a musician based out of Norman, is also an OCCC journalism student.
He said his musical career began when he was about 19. He spent the next 10 years of his life following The Grateful Dead around America. However, the fun came with its drawbacks.
“You become mature when you realize you’re not bulletproof anymore,” he said.
Lowery partied too hard, he said, and all of that took a toll on his body. Second Life, he said, gives him a new avenue to create and perform the music he wants while keeping the smoke and alcohol out of his system.
Lowery performed his first show in May 2007 and has since gained a small army of 320-ish followers in his online fan club.
From stateside to Europe, Lowery said he’s gotten up as early as 3 a.m. to perform live shows for fans in Germany.
Setting up an account on Second Life is free, while additional accounts are $9.95.
